bigboard wrote:

Ben Blackmore wrote:


Right, when I get home tonight I shall take a hole poker to the plastic and
melt some holes in the bottom, see if we can get some air circulating in
there! Will also see if I can get some pipe and put some holes in there, add
some paper, cardboard and maybe turn the pile again.
Where would I buy worms from? I ask a guy at work who is a fisherman, if
they'd sell them in a fishing shop, but he said they might be the wrong type
of worms, is this true? Do garden centers sell worms? I haven't seen any!


The type you are looking for are Eisenia foetida or Brandling worms.
Fishing shops to often sell these. But don't bother! If the conditions
are right for them and there is access - ie your new ventilation - they
will turn up on their own and start breeding in no time. There really is
no need to buy worms for compost bins outside. However, if you put
bought worms in unsuitable conditions, they'll slither off again sharpish!

If you are in a hurry, have a fettle around in an understanding
neighbour's compost bin. I'm sure you'll find plenty.

Alternatively, put some sheets of damp cardboard on bare soil under the
shrubs for a day or two, then gather the thin red worms from under that.
I seem to recall that if your compost smells really strongly ammoniacal
it's probably too acid for them (and the better bacteria, too); fork in
a few good handfuls of garden lime to aerate the stuff and alter the pH.

regards
sarah


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